Unsafe use of fireworks causes fire in Horicon Marsh

The Waupun Fire Department responded to the Horicon Marsh Tuesday, May 27, 2025, after a person reported to be lighting fireworks on the auto tour trail off Highway 49 just into Dodge County started a vegetation fire.

The call for the fire department came in around 2:20 PM. Crews were heard on the scanner saying the fire was on the east side of the auto trail and they were instructed to go the wrong way on the trail to access the fire.

Initially Waupun Fire requested water trucks from Oakfield and Brownsville fire departments to assist them, but they were able to get the fire out, keeping the fire to about a one acre area, before those departments arrived.

Because the fire happened on federal land, the US Fish and Wildlife were called in to investigate the incident. It was not released if the person that started the fire was caught or not.